S2 Ep107: Sex Rx: FDA Approved Drugs to Boost Your Libido

Consider the “cycle of sex” throughout our lives. In your twenties, it’s all about sex, all the time. Then there’s the baby-making years, where sex has a purpose. And before you know it, the bedroom is a place where all you want to do is get a decent night’s sleep.

 The years go by, and suddenly it occurs to you that you can’t remember the last time you had sex. And if you try to get things going your brain and your body don’t necessarily cooperate.  And then things get even more complex during perimenopause and menopause, when, in addition to dealing with plummeting hormones, insomnia, hot flashes. medications, stress, you may also be dealing with a rotten relationship, or no relationship. 

So, what about taking a medication to give a lift to a lagging libido?

This episode is an excerpt from my upcoming book: Put the “O” Back into Your Mojo: A Guide to Post-Menopause Libido and Orgasm, now available for pre-order on Amazon.com

The definition of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) 

The controversy surrounding the medicalization of low libido 

Non-biologic factors that can lead to low libido

The biological components of HSDD

The role of neurotransmitters in libido

Who can (should) take one of the FDA-approved drugs to boost libido

Flibanserin (Addyi™)

What it is

How it is used

How well it works

Side Effects

Bremelanotide (Vyleesi™)

What it is

How it is used

How well it works

Side effects

For more information on this topic: 

Episode 16:  Minimizing the Monotony of Monogamy with Dr. Alexandra Solomon

Episode 21:  Say Yes! to Testosterone for Women

Episode 54: What Happens During Sex Therapy with Rachel Zar

Lauren Streicher, MD is a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, and the founding medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Center for Sexual Medicine and Menopause. She is a certified menopause practitioner of the North American Menopause Society. 

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Dr. Streicher is the medical correspondent for Chicago’s top-rated news program, the WGN Morning News, and has been seen on The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Oprah Winfrey Show, CNN, NPR, Dr. Radio, Nightline, Fox and Friends, The Steve Harvey Show, CBS This Morning, ABC News Now, NBCNightlyNews,20/20, and World News Tonight. She is an expert source for many magazines and serves on the medical advisory board of The Kinsey Institute, Self Magazine, and Prevention Magazine. She writes a regular column for The Ethel by AARP and Prevention Magazine. 

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Books by Lauren Streicher, MD

Slip Sliding Away: Turning Back the Clock on Your Vagina-A gynecologist’s guide to eliminating post-menopause dryness and pain

Hot Flash Hell: A Gynecologist's Guide to Turning Down the Heat

Sex Rx- Hormones, Health, and Your Best Sex Ever

The Essential Guide to Hysterectomy